Text Segmentation?
Much of the Pali canon on SuttaCentral is available in segmented form. This means the Pali text is broken down into small semantic units the range of which can extend from a small phrase to a few sentences or in some cases even a somewhat longer paragraph.
Segmentation was first introduced when Bhante Sujato made his new English translation of the four main Pali Nikayas; it was required for using a computer assisted translation software. Now it is being extended to the early parts of the Khuddaka Nikaya and the Vinaya texts.
Once segmented texts existed on SuttaCentral it turned out that this technology allows for many more usages. It allows for example to view the root text and translation side by side on the SuttaCentral website. Sutta references can be tuned much finer by referencing to segment numbers. It will also facilitate to make new translations in languages other than English, using the matched Pali and English segments for comparison and translating from there into a third language.
The development of SuttaCentral Voice fully relies on this segmentation technology, which is why only segmented texts can be fully supported (see Support Policy).
Segments in SuttaCentral Voice are multilingual by design and bilingual in practice. This means each segment typically has two lines, one in the root language (Pali) and one in the translation language (English):
pli: Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassa.
en: For desire is the root of suffering.
This makes it possible that you can listen to a sutta both in Pali and English segment by segment (see Settings).
Support Policy